Allegri: Defence done well is magnificent

Juventus take on Frosinone tomorrow looking to maintain their 100% start to the season. Massimiliano Allegri has had to do a lot of squad shuffling early in the season, and might revert to a three-man defence, something we haven’t seen in a while.

“It is possible we could go to three at the back. If it is three, then one of Alex Sandro, Joao Cancelo and Juan Cuadrado will be rested. If we have four at the back, they could all be out there.

“Football is beautiful even when there aren’t many goals, because defence is part of the sport and, if it’s done well, looks magnificent.”

The chatter is still all about Cristiano Ronaldo and his unwarranted sending off midweek in the Champions League.

“Ronaldo is a wonderful added value for Juventus, as his performances show.

“However, the team does not depend on him. There are very high expectations around Cristiano and he is also very demanding with himself, but he has nothing to prove. He just needs to play, have fun and score goals. What happened on Wednesday is already behind us.”

Another player in the headlines, more so due to his absence from the starting lineup, has been Paulo Dybala.

“I can confirm Dybala will start tomorrow. He is an important player, there are goals in those legs and he could also play as a centre-forward, although I’d have to make some adjustments. The team is improving in general and getting to know each other better.”

Allegri also added that Wojciech Szczesny will stay in goal with Mattie Perin set to make his debut in Wednesday’s game against Bologna.

Regarding Douglas Costa, who will now miss the next four Serie A games, the manager added -

“He paid his fine, he understood everything and what’s more is also now injured. That is behind us now, so no more talking about Sassuolo.”

Looking forward to the opponents in the next two rounds, Allegri cautioned his side to maintain focus.

“Frosinone and Bologna are both teams who will play the game of a lifetime against us, so we have to step it up. Focus is crucial, because there is the risk of too much positive energy after the Valencia win.”